BILL
The Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) party has said the proposed Finance Bill 2024 would add more financial constraints to the already over taxed Kenyans. Speaking over the weekend in Migori Town, MPs allied to the party noted the bill proposes a raft of tax measures that would hike the cost of living for citizens.
The National Treasury has proposed to introduce a 16 percent Value Added Tax (VAT) on bread and milk among other goods and, which may see the price of a 400 grams’ loaf of bread increase by at least Sh10 among other tax measures.
The opposition hit out that some of the proposed tax measures directly affect Kenyans and called upon the Opposition and all Kenyans to reject the Finance Bill.
Opposition leaders at Kwa Secondary School, Suna East in Migori County. Photo by Dadius Ontiri
Addressing congregants at Kwa Secondary, Suna East in Migori County, during a fund raiser presided over by party leader Raila Odinga, John Mbadi, Nominated Member of Parliament threatened to mobilise his colleagues in Parliament to reject the Finance Bill, saying it would hurt Kenyans economically if passed.
“As one of the experts and Member of Azimio Economic Council, I have already seen the bill is going to hurt our people. We need to reject Finance bill 2024 in totality,” said Mbadi, and vowed to whip up Opposition MPs to reject the tax measures when the bill is tabled in Parliament for debate.
On her part, the MP for Likoni Mishi Mboko rebuked the government’s plan to increase VAT on vital food and non-food items saying bread is a commodity that the people used daily hence many Kenyans would be affected if the proposed VAT measures sailed through in Parliament.
The MP for Kisumu West Ms Rosa Buyu who also spoke at the event criticised the Mount Kenya proponents of the ongoing One Man, One Vote, One Shilling formula debate on national cake distribution, terming them hypocrites.
She said the formula was one of the proposals included in the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) Bill which was opposed by the same politicians, led by the then MP for Mathira Rigathi Gachagua and now Deputy President.
“In the previous handshake Government, former President Uhuru Kenyatta and Raila came up with the BBI and among its proposals was the one man, one vote, one-shilling formula, but the DP himself, now supporting the formula on national resource distribution vehemently opposed it,” said Buyu.
“How come today those who rejected BBI in 2022 are the biggest proponents of the same proposal they rejected in the BBI? Kenyans want to be united, and we will not accept something that will divide us,” Ms Buyu warned.
